Since 1934, this family has been making Ganesh idols

“I have a diploma in commercial arts. But my father learnt all his skills on the job,” he says. He usually makes eight to 10 big idols every year, having in the past made some of the more famous idols like the Khetwadi Ganapati, Chhagan Bhujbal’s Ganpati at Mazgaon and a few others in Girgaum.

This year’s Lalbaugcha Raja began to take shape nearly a month ago. The spray painting and moulding is done by artisans while Ratnakar himself handles the finer aspects like painting the eyes. “The eyes convey everything,” he says. “It’s after years that I have accomplished this skill.”

There are other minutiae to bear in mind while crafting the Raja, he says. While most big idols take the main road to Girgaum Chowpatty on the day of visarjan (immersion), Lalbaugcha Raja follows a winding path through lanes in Lalbaug, Chinchpokli and Girgaum, meeting more devotees on the way before reaching Chowpatty.

“So, while constructing the idol, we have to keep in mind that it has to be manoeuvered through these narrow lanes,” Ratnakar explains.

Rupesh Pawar, vice president of the Lalbaugcha Raja Ganeshotsav Sarvajanik Mandal, is all praise for Ratnakar. “I have been working with him for eight years. He is excellent… He does not treat idol making like a business.”